10 Points to Consider From My Experience on a Juice Cleanse:

If you’ve been following along with my stories, I documented my entire 2 days on the step 1 beginner juice cleanse with Pressed and Co. Step 1 includes 5 juices and 2 smoothies, 7 juices/drinks in total,  a nice introduction to juice cleansing. I’ve had clients ask my thoughts on a juice cleanse so what better way to give feedback than trying it first hand. I’ll try to keep this short and sweet….PSYCH haha, i’m long winded so bare with me.

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1. It was A LOT more enjoyable and more filling than I ever imagined so I was pleasantly surprised:

You are drinking every 2.5-3hrs so it’s not like you are ever starving. Is it lower calorie than my normal plan? 100%. There were times when I was a bit hungry but I wasn’t starving like I originally assumed I would. I think when you hear “juice cleanse” there is a direct correlation to “starvation”…well at least in my mind there was before I tried it myself. From my experience it was not hard to do, I did truly enjoy it and I would recommend it.
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2. Personally, I would recommend a 3 day juice cleanse:

You have the option of a 3 day, 5 day, or 7 day cleanse. I think 3 days is a PERFECT amount of days to commit to, and more than that I would probably have gone a little crazy. Granted, I think longer than 3 days I would experience different things either positive or negative. Since I am walking away from only 2 days of juice and smoothies thinking I could have done 3 days makes the juice cleanse seem more worth while to me and something I would do again. For example, it’s like 9 hole golf vs. 18 hole golf. 9 hole golf I leave feeling like “that wasn’t too bad, I could come back for more”, 18 holes I’ve lost 20 balls, broken a club or two, my fiance and I are barely together, and I question my existence on this Earth. See what I mean? Not a golfer? Whatever, moving on…
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3. Headaches may occur, but not necessarily because of the “detoxing” process of the juice:

Juice cleanses do advise to try and avoid completely or limit caffeine intake. I do drink a lot of caffiene, 2-3 cups a day. So the  first day I really tried not to have any coffee, but later in the day I experienced a crippling and BRUTAL migraine that forced me to take a nap. So day 2 I started my day with a small cup of coffee and almond milk to see if it was the detox causing the headache or the caffeine withdrawal. I did not have a headache of migraine for the rest of the day, so I am thinking a lot of the headaches people explain could be more from caffeine withdrawal (from various sources) more than the detoxing nature of the juice. Some people would like to say I didn’t do a true cleanse because I had  caffeine, but I don’t believe 1 small cup of coffee is going to “ruin”  the overall purpose of the juice cleanse. I think you are still reaping benefits, it’s not an all or nothing relationship. I did however reduce my coffee substantially from what I was used to from 3 cups to 1 small cup, and I had it with almond milk vs. my normal cream or heavy milk so that was a proud moment for me.
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4. I would 100% recommend a juice cleanse to people after a vacation, holiday, or a bender.

Maybe you went WAY harder on the swim-up bar and buffet then you could have ever imagined and you are feeling like a garbage pit. Maybe you went on an unexpected (or expected) bender either solo or with friends and you are on death’s door. Maybe you have a lot of family and had 4 thanksgiving’s or 4 christmas’ and your digestive system has seen better days. All of these reasons would be good reasons to go on a 3-day juice cleanse. Reset your system, get yourself back on track, have a few low calorie days before getting back on a healthy meal plan, and lower your blood alcohol. I would highly recommend a juice cleanse after an event, regardless if you went hard or not, I think it’s just beneficial if maybe you are not feeling your best and you want to “detox” your system.
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5. It may or may not be the best thing to “get ready” for a vacation or to “lose the last 5lbs” type of thing:

If you are wanting to do a juice cleanse before, I would recommend 1-2 days of eating solids in between the juice cleanse and before you go away. From my experience, once you get off of an all-liquid diet you may be more inclined to binge if you are not strong willed. You really can’t go from being on a juice cleanse to then going wild just because you think it is well-deserved. So that’s why I would recommend taking a couple of days in between so there isn’t that temptation when you are on a vacation and exposed to a lot more food and drinks then normal. That would be my only thing to consider about cleansing before hand. It may make you feel lighter and smaller if that is what’s important to you, but you would just need to be careful not to go wild while away. This is why it is better to simply workout hard and eat very well leading up to the trip vs. a low calories juice cleanse. Save it for when you get back would be my recommendation, or be strong minded if you are going to do it before hand.

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6. I performed my regular leg workout on day 2 of a juice cleanse and I was fine:

I did not see a difference in my strength, and I do not believe it was dangerous to perform my usual intense leg workout on day 2 of the cleanse. I also still did my 20mins of fasted cardio on my stair master and day 2 I felt totally normal. Honestly guys, its 2-3 days of drinking a lot of juice, smoothies, and having a ton of fruit and veggies. Anyone should be able to do 2-3 days of juice cleansing and not feel dramatically lethargic. I really see zero difference in say a person practicing a vegan diet day by day, week by week. No one bats an eye at them working out or going about their routines…i’m sure my caloric intake on the juice cleanse and a vegans daily caloric intake were very similar over the span of 2 days. Yes my caloric intake was different from what I am personally used to, especially in protein, but like i said it was TWO measly days. I’m sure if i did the 7 day cleanse I would feel a lot lower in energy but this again would be simply due to caloric intake. What I would advise is don’t get so in your head or make it such a big deal you are only drinking juice and smoothies for 2-3 days. It’s a mind game…if you are telling yourself “this is so hard i’m only drinking juice” and allowing others to make it a big deal then you will also make it a big deal and it will seem harder. Once people say “juice cleanse”, it just seems to really throw people. I’ve read food diaries where a lot less calories are being eaten in a day CONSISTENTLY with solid foods than on a juice cleanse. Long story short, YOU WILL LIVE!

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7. I lost 4lbs in 2 days, but I’m not going to tell you this was pure body fat:

I can’t tell you it was 4lbs of body fat because I do not have a realistic or on-hand way to measure whether it was body fat or not. I am sure it could have been .5-1lb of body fat, but the other 3lbs could easily be water loss.

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8. If you need to lose a substantial amount of body fat, a juice cleanse wouldn’t be a bad idea:

Okay so, I really do think a juice cleanse would be an amazing start for a lot of people in the more obese category for a few reasons. For one, it can really get someone started off on the right foot and will help with vitamin intake, and eating calories more consistently in the day. Something people love to discredit about dieting or generally being strict on a meal plan, is the fact it takes an IMMENSE amount of self-control and there is a load of nobility in being able to stick to something through and through. Being able to adhere strongly to a juice cleanse could prepare someone for sticking to their diet when they switch to solid meals. Mentally, it could be a really good thing for some people because it could be an opportunity to prove they can follow a plan. People really don’t give those who diet enough credit for being strong and committed to something for the greater good. Being committed to something without getting instant feedback is not celebrated enough. As a society we hear dieting and think about all the negatives that surround it, or we love to tell those “life is short, live a little”. Well on the contrary, life could be SHORTER for some if we don’t kick bad habits and start eating healthier. I think following a diet or juice cleanse through thick and thin shows lot of self-control and a strong will to commit at all costs without seeing instant positive feedback, and that’s a pretty amazing characteristic trait. Two, a juice cleanse for someone really needing to lose lbs of body fat could be a very positive thing to jump start their weight loss. Just be advised when someone switches off the juice cleanse and onto solid foods, resist the urge to binge…just get back on track and eat PORTIONED and healthy meals.

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9. My digestion time or bathroom visits did not increase:

I didn’t notice a difference, in fact i think this slowed down for me. When I started eating foods again I went to the bathroom better. TMI? Sorry…actually I don’t give a shit. Bad pun? My bad. But from my experience and from countless food diaries, I have seem time and again constipation, bloating, and not being able to go to the washroom is due to overall caloric intake i.e. not enough calories in the day. If I see someone with a low caloric intake day by day, regardless if they have a lot of fiber out of those foods, they tend to be more bloated and cannot go to the washroom like they want. When I get them to start eating more calories/meals in the day SURPRISE they are able to go to the bathroom better. Not a lot of people understand constipation can sometimes be more tied to your overall caloric intake. I do find however people would rather point to intolerances and allergies as the main reason for constipation, instead of examining proper caloric and water intake first. So don’t necessarily rely on a juice cleanse to “clean” you out and get things going. It could for some, but don’t be disappointed if it doesn’t.

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10. By end of day 2 I started craving literally chewing on solid foods:

It wasn’t like I was craving bad foods or anything like that, because I was genuinely enjoying the juice and smoothies. The juice particularly from Pressed and Co will blow your mind how delicious and fresh it is, I HIGHLY recommend them. So I didn’t miss bad foods because I was feeling very healthy and very happy. I did have to sit and drink my juice while my fiance ate some treats and had wings and beer on a Friday night, but I honestly wasn’t sad. Again, this is a mental thing…if you are feeling sorry for yourself like, “all i have is stupid juice and everyone get’s to eat”, then just don’t do a juice cleanse lol. If you are going to do something then be happy you are doing it and stay positive, don’t feel sorry for yourself while you are on the cleanse. But I DID miss physically CHEWING and I was surprised in how quickly I missed it. But at the same time, the act of chewing is part of our digestion and tells our brain to start the digestive process of our meals. Digestion begins in our mouth, our teeth chomping down, tearing, and saliva production starts the feedback to our brain that we are eating so there is a sort of satiety associated with chewing solid foods. This is why some people may not feel as full for as long when they have a smoothie or a juice, because all the nutrients where sipped or chugged, so a big part of the digestion process was missed in a way. This is why I believe although I was consuming calories and was satisfied

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CONCLUDING STATEMENTS

a. Yes I would recommend the juice cleanse, I enjoyed it and it wasn’t hard to do.

b. No, it wont make you magically lose a ton of weight but it can jump start weight loss and get your mind right and committed to something.

c. Don’t check the scale after the juice cleanse, the scale is only a tiny part of the story so don’t get too caught up with it.

d. I think a 5 or 7 day cleanse would be intense for me personally, a 5 day cleanse would likely be my maximum. I could imagine feeling very low energy after 5 or 7 days. 3 days is PERFECT!

e. Try hard not to binge after you have finished the juice cleanse. Do not reward yourself with food.

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